Fitness FAQ - Fat/Weightloss/Bulking
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Original post by lolerwaffles
Firstly, thanks a lot for your quick reply 
Well, I also take soybeans once in 2 days. What other food items would you recommend for me to gain that protein ? I thought its best to avoid fat products since I am trying to loose weight around the belly area . I actually have this app in which i can calculate the calories but Its never accurate !! So i gave up on that.
Well, I do like bicep curls and hammer curls like 10-15 reps of 3 sets. Including the short 1-2 mins break time it takes about 30 mins.
So is it okay if I cut down cardio on Wednesday ?? Since I wont be doing cardio on that day should I change my diet and take less calories ??
Well, I also take soybeans once in 2 days. What other food items would you recommend for me to gain that protein ? I thought its best to avoid fat products since I am trying to loose weight around the belly area . I actually have this app in which i can calculate the calories but Its never accurate !! So i gave up on that. Well, I do like bicep curls and hammer curls like 10-15 reps of 3 sets. Including the short 1-2 mins break time it takes about 30 mins.
So is it okay if I cut down cardio on Wednesday ?? Since I wont be doing cardio on that day should I change my diet and take less calories ??
If you like peanut butter, it's a great way to get fat and protein, also tuna is great source of protein, but not cheap, if you want seriously ceap protein, buy 'white fish' sainsburys/ morrisons own brand, which is coley fish fillets probably best protein: price ratio of any fish, because fish isn't that cheap, then of course chicken, beef jerky... Any of those will up your protein. Good luck!
Original post by tooambitious
If you like peanut butter, it's a great way to get fat and protein, also tuna is great source of protein, but not cheap, if you want seriously ceap protein, buy 'white fish' sainsburys/ morrisons own brand, which is coley fish fillets probably best protein: price ratio of any fish, because fish isn't that cheap, then of course chicken, beef jerky... Any of those will up your protein. Good luck!
LOL you forgot am a vegeterian
. Anyways let me try peanut butter 
Original post by lolerwaffles
LOL you forgot am a vegeterian . Anyways let me try peanut butter
. Anyways let me try peanut butter Oh dear, sorry, I just skim read
. lots of nuts then I suppose, lots if beans, avocado and dried apricotsUse something like myplate to track your diet for 3-4 days then take an average of that. Use that to judge if you are getting good macro nutrition. If your calorie intake is enough should be obvious if you weigh yourself. I suspect too low calories, fat and protein too.
I'll post what I might eat to give you an idea since I think there is a lack of good veggie info. I'm vegan, 5ft4, 65kg, gaining 1lb a week, lift 3-4 times a week, walk a lot but bit half arsed with cardio
Breakfast: 3 Shredded wheat, berries, 30g mixed nuts, soy milk
Elevenses: 2 Linda McCartney sausages, homemade oat protein bar
Lunch: Lasagna (TVP, spinach, tomato, white pasta, soy milk based white sauce), broccilli
Dinner: 2 lentil & sietan burgers, corn on the cob
Desert (not right after): Chocolate
bedtime snack: 2 hummus sandwiches (brown bread), 2-3 bits of fruit
3000 calories, 150g protein
If you can post your full work out more specifically you'll get better advice
I'll post what I might eat to give you an idea since I think there is a lack of good veggie info. I'm vegan, 5ft4, 65kg, gaining 1lb a week, lift 3-4 times a week, walk a lot but bit half arsed with cardio
Breakfast: 3 Shredded wheat, berries, 30g mixed nuts, soy milk
Elevenses: 2 Linda McCartney sausages, homemade oat protein bar
Lunch: Lasagna (TVP, spinach, tomato, white pasta, soy milk based white sauce), broccilli
Dinner: 2 lentil & sietan burgers, corn on the cob
Desert (not right after): Chocolate
bedtime snack: 2 hummus sandwiches (brown bread), 2-3 bits of fruit
3000 calories, 150g protein
If you can post your full work out more specifically you'll get better advice
your a vegetarian and hope to achieve decent muscle mass in 4 months? also there's not point in focusing on abs so much, or cardio, you won't get anywhere fast on your current scheme. your diet will also be lacking creatine due to no meat, so perhaps supplement that in.
I eat 3000-4000 calories a day
breakfast: Porridge, handful almonds, apple(caffeine) and a decent amount of milk
mid morn snack(normally after a workout) protein shake of around 60g
lunch: tuna and rice/ eat out (subway or the likes) aiming for around 800+ calories here
mid afternoon snack: shake/BCAA what ever else
Dinner: what ever is prepared for me
then some milk before bed so I have a decent amount of casein in my body to prevent breakdown
I train 4/5/6 times a week
workout A: chest and tri's
the usual exercises here
bench press, incline/decline, fly's, dips, rope pulldown, skull crusher-etc etc
workout B: back, bicep and forearm
Deadlift!!, pullups to exhaustion, weighted seated rows, chin ups as well, bicep curls with E/Z bar, making sure You always grip things tightly to build forearms, hammer curls, decline bicep curls, 21's..
workout C: shoulder and legs
Squat, leg press, calf raises, lunges, shoulder press with barbell, then with dumbells, then lat raises, arnold press, then front raises with rope for continuous tension.
I alternate each week so it can be ABCAB then the week after BCABC then CABCA, depends if i've gone surfing, I'd say I added about 1kg-2kg a week for my first 3 weeks, pure muscle(checked before and after body fat/visc fat etc) then adding about 1/2 that now, don't do any stomach exercises yet I just seem to have a decent one
I eat 3000-4000 calories a day
breakfast: Porridge, handful almonds, apple(caffeine) and a decent amount of milk
mid morn snack(normally after a workout) protein shake of around 60g
lunch: tuna and rice/ eat out (subway or the likes) aiming for around 800+ calories here
mid afternoon snack: shake/BCAA what ever else
Dinner: what ever is prepared for me
then some milk before bed so I have a decent amount of casein in my body to prevent breakdown
I train 4/5/6 times a week
workout A: chest and tri's
the usual exercises here
bench press, incline/decline, fly's, dips, rope pulldown, skull crusher-etc etc
workout B: back, bicep and forearm
Deadlift!!, pullups to exhaustion, weighted seated rows, chin ups as well, bicep curls with E/Z bar, making sure You always grip things tightly to build forearms, hammer curls, decline bicep curls, 21's..
workout C: shoulder and legs
Squat, leg press, calf raises, lunges, shoulder press with barbell, then with dumbells, then lat raises, arnold press, then front raises with rope for continuous tension.
I alternate each week so it can be ABCAB then the week after BCABC then CABCA, depends if i've gone surfing, I'd say I added about 1kg-2kg a week for my first 3 weeks, pure muscle(checked before and after body fat/visc fat etc) then adding about 1/2 that now, don't do any stomach exercises yet I just seem to have a decent one
Original post by pshewitt1
I'd say I added about 1kg-2kg a week for my first 3 weeks, pure muscle(checked before and after body fat/visc fat etc)
I'm fairly sure that's not humanly possible. You can't not have gained some fat.
Say you started at 15% at 60kg then got to 15% at 70kg, you've gained 1.5kg of fat. Which is good going but still but if that's not what you mean then it's much more likely something has gone wrong in your measuring
Original post by BKS
Use something like myplate to track your diet for 3-4 days then take an average of that. Use that to judge if you are getting good macro nutrition. If your calorie intake is enough should be obvious if you weigh yourself. I suspect too low calories, fat and protein too.
I'll post what I might eat to give you an idea since I think there is a lack of good veggie info. I'm vegan, 5ft4, 65kg, gaining 1lb a week, lift 3-4 times a week, walk a lot but bit half arsed with cardio
Breakfast: 3 Shredded wheat, berries, 30g mixed nuts, soy milk
Elevenses: 2 Linda McCartney sausages, homemade oat protein bar
Lunch: Lasagna (TVP, spinach, tomato, white pasta, soy milk based white sauce), broccilli
Dinner: 2 lentil & sietan burgers, corn on the cob
Desert (not right after): Chocolate
bedtime snack: 2 hummus sandwiches (brown bread), 2-3 bits of fruit
3000 calories, 150g protein
If you can post your full work out more specifically you'll get better advice
I'll post what I might eat to give you an idea since I think there is a lack of good veggie info. I'm vegan, 5ft4, 65kg, gaining 1lb a week, lift 3-4 times a week, walk a lot but bit half arsed with cardio
Breakfast: 3 Shredded wheat, berries, 30g mixed nuts, soy milk
Elevenses: 2 Linda McCartney sausages, homemade oat protein bar
Lunch: Lasagna (TVP, spinach, tomato, white pasta, soy milk based white sauce), broccilli
Dinner: 2 lentil & sietan burgers, corn on the cob
Desert (not right after): Chocolate
bedtime snack: 2 hummus sandwiches (brown bread), 2-3 bits of fruit
3000 calories, 150g protein
If you can post your full work out more specifically you'll get better advice
Damn that's a lot of processed crap.
Original post by eternaloptimist96
I had a similar problem, i toned up in a couple months down to a joint effort of diet and CARDIO! It's effort but so worth it. Start running, dancing, cycling, swimming ... anything that gets your heart rate up. And when you reach that point when your panting and thinking your hearts going to burst out of your chest, go for another 5 minutes. You have to be uncomfortable to see change! I think someone mentioned it before but muscle burns faster than fat so your strong abs and muscly thighs might come in handy after all If you have a gymn membership (I'd strongly recommend it), hopefully your gymn will have what i call vibration plates ( not entirely sure if thats their real name). Try doing basic toning moves on there, the vibrations will break up the fat and increase your metabolism (which means you'll get muscle faster which burns quicker etc etc).
Vibrations will not and cannot "break up the fat" and won't increase your metabolism. Technically the only thing that increases baseline metabolism is an increase in muscle mass. Vibration will not help with muscle gain either.
After about 10 minutes of that, hit the treads and get your heart going! you really need to push yourself if you want good results.
Also with your diet, try substituting browns for whites e.g eat brown bread instead of white bread.
Dairy can also be quite fattening so try cutting back on that. If you struggle with over eating, try drinking a glass of water before and after all your meals, the first half fills your stomach leaving less room for food and the second helps with the digestion process, reducing the risk of heartburn. I've also heard that grapefruit is really good for weight loss, something about speeding up your metabolism but i've never actually tried it. If you do be sure to let me know if it works!
Please explain to me how dairy specifically is fattening? Dairy does contain simple sugars and fat, but that doesn't inherently make it fattening. People get fat from consuming more calories than they burn. Often this excess of calories is from carbohydrates as opposed to fat. There is no reason to fear dietary fat - it is essential for absorbing fat soluble vitamines (like vitamin A and vitamin D), but also for production of steroid hormones like oestrogen. Dairy is also a good source of vitamin D and calcium for people. There is nothing in grapefruit to "speed up metabolism", it's broscience, and people shouldn't be looking for shortcuts to weightloss; you get out what you put in, so eat less and get exercising more.
I'm not pretending to be an expert or anything but i've done a lot of research on this for my own benefit and all the tips i've listed (other than the grapefruit :P ) have worked for me. Goodluck!
If you have a gymn membership (I'd strongly recommend it), hopefully your gymn will have what i call vibration plates ( not entirely sure if thats their real name). Try doing basic toning moves on there, the vibrations will break up the fat and increase your metabolism (which means you'll get muscle faster which burns quicker etc etc).Vibrations will not and cannot "break up the fat" and won't increase your metabolism. Technically the only thing that increases baseline metabolism is an increase in muscle mass. Vibration will not help with muscle gain either.
After about 10 minutes of that, hit the treads and get your heart going! you really need to push yourself if you want good results.
Also with your diet, try substituting browns for whites e.g eat brown bread instead of white bread.
Dairy can also be quite fattening so try cutting back on that. If you struggle with over eating, try drinking a glass of water before and after all your meals, the first half fills your stomach leaving less room for food and the second helps with the digestion process, reducing the risk of heartburn. I've also heard that grapefruit is really good for weight loss, something about speeding up your metabolism but i've never actually tried it. If you do be sure to let me know if it works!
Please explain to me how dairy specifically is fattening? Dairy does contain simple sugars and fat, but that doesn't inherently make it fattening. People get fat from consuming more calories than they burn. Often this excess of calories is from carbohydrates as opposed to fat. There is no reason to fear dietary fat - it is essential for absorbing fat soluble vitamines (like vitamin A and vitamin D), but also for production of steroid hormones like oestrogen. Dairy is also a good source of vitamin D and calcium for people. There is nothing in grapefruit to "speed up metabolism", it's broscience, and people shouldn't be looking for shortcuts to weightloss; you get out what you put in, so eat less and get exercising more.
I'm not pretending to be an expert or anything but i've done a lot of research on this for my own benefit and all the tips i've listed (other than the grapefruit :P ) have worked for me. Goodluck!
I feel bad for you. Your heart is in the right place, but whatever "research" you've done is nullified because a lot of what you post is senseless misinformation. I appreciate that you were just trying to help, but I think you need to review where you get your information, and what your research sources are.
To the OP - read the stickies. All the info you could ever want is in there. If you are eating fewer calories than you are burning, it is physically impossible to build muscle mass. You may increase muscle definition ("become more toned") by losing bodyfat and maintaining muscle mass, and your muscles often appear bigger when they are more defined - it's just an optical illusion though. Muscles also look bigger during exercise because they are engorged with blood, so don't freak out during exercise if muscles look bigger - it's temporary.
(edited 11 years ago)
Monday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + biceps & forearms(30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Tuesday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + shoulders & chest (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Wednesday- Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + triceps & wings/back (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Thursday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + Legs(20 mins) + ABS ( 20mins)
Friday - Cardio (30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + biceps & foreamrs (30mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Saturday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + shoulders & chest (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Sunday - ABS (20 mins)
Tuesday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + shoulders & chest (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Wednesday- Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + triceps & wings/back (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Thursday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + Legs(20 mins) + ABS ( 20mins)
Friday - Cardio (30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + biceps & foreamrs (30mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Saturday - Cardio(30 mins) + 10 mins stretches + shoulders & chest (30 mins) + ABS (20 mins)
Sunday - ABS (20 mins)
I am sorry but I have to say this, your routine have to be scrapped ASAP. I don't know what specific exercises you are doing but first things first why are you working out 7 days a week? Even a professional bodybuilder have at least ONE rest day. How long have you been working out? If you are a beginner you should be doing a full body workout 3/4 times a day instead and the majority of the exercises SHOULD be COMPOUNDS. This seems to be a little Broscience here but you are better off doing full body compound exercises than the routine that you drawn out.
You seem to be emphasising your ''mirror muscles'' which is your chest, biceps and forearms. There is no point working them out 2 times a week seperately which will slowly lead to overtraining. If you want bigger arms, work on your triceps, your forearms and biceps could only grow a tad much in your lifetime.
Abs everyday? Are you serious? The only way to get a six-pack abs is to LOSE WEIGHT, nothing else, abs exercises are only for definition but with all those belly fat, abs exercises are just a waste of time.
Again, I don't know what exercises you are doing, but I suggest you do some research before creating your own routine. Getting ripped for summer is not as easy as you think
Anyways, nutrition wise, everything seems ok as long as you are getting enough calories and proteins you need. Remember try to get about 2g of protein per KG.
If you have any questions feel free to message me.
Cheers,
-Kevin
Original post by Shawshank
Damn that's a lot of processed crap.
The only thing there I'd count as processed is the sausages, TVP and soy milk. Soy milk and TVP aren't at all crap. Sausages, maybe but they are handy.
Shredded wheat are just wheat
Hummus I make myself and unless you count tahini as processed it's not at all
my oat bars are oats, apples, seeds and protein powder. Protein powder is processed but not crap and it's 2 scoops into 10 bars so not much
lentil & sietan burgers are homemade and as processed as you count any flour to be
chocolate isn't necessary, I just have a sweet tooth
bread I make my own so about as processed as you count flour to be again
You can live on beans, nuts and veg if you want but there's no real need to be unless you are ending up eating too much bad fat
(edited 11 years ago)
Hi guys,
Basically I'm a very skinny 19 year old guy. I'm 6ft2 and weigh about 60kg. I spent ages telling myself that it would be very hard for me to bulk up because I was naturally so skinny, but I now realise that that was just me being lazy.
I've had a quick scout around online, and I've come up with a provisional diet/exercise plan to help me get bigger. I am not trying to be Arnold Schwarzenegger, but I would like to stop looking like an anorexic stick insect.
If anyone could have a quick look at my initial planned diet/exercise routine, I'd be grateful. I am on a gap year at the moment, so I'm holding out until October when I will have the use of a free gym in my college. So the exercises below are not weights-based.
Diet
Based on a rough input of what I ate yesterday, I guess I'm eating about 1600kcal per day. This is because I don't have much of an appetite and I'm lazy when it comes to food. This food is generally not junk - as I'm living at home I tend to get a good cooked meal every evening, and I make my own sandwiches to take to work. Breakfast is generally toast/cereal/croissants (last one's not so healthy, I realise).
After a few minutes of Googling, I found a suggestion that I should eat (in kcal):
bodyweight in pounds (135) * 18 = 2430kcal
+ 500kcal after a couple of weeks at that level
Does this seem reasonable? And would the diet below be good enough to achieve that, and give me a reasonable amount of protein?
Breakfast:
[INDENT]-Cereal (large bowl) w/milk (semi-skimmed)
-Fruit (one item)[/INDENT]
Mid-morning snack:
[INDENT]-Nuts (I like peanuts and pistachio - are these equally good?)
-Fruit (one item)
[/INDENT]
Lunch:
[INDENT]-Cheese and ham sandwich (x2, i.e. four slices of bread)
-Fruit (one item)
-Chocolate bar or piece of cake[/INDENT]
Dinner:
[INDENT]-Cooked dinner of some kind, usually involving chicken/salmon/pork and potato/rice, plus some veg
-Fruit (one item)
-Biscuits/pudding of some kind[/INDENT]
Evening snack:
[INDENT]-Nuts
-Fruit (one item)[/INDENT]
Exercise
I was planning to follow the basic routine set out here to begin with. Doing pull-ups is a problem for me at the moment, given the lack of equipment (my house doesn't seem to offer many pull-up opportunities either). I was planning to replace these with sit-ups, but I then need something to exercise my biceps. Any ideas? I guess I could buy some dumbbells - what sort of weight should I start out with?
Also, would it be a good idea to do much cardio-vascular stuff alongside my other exercises, or will this just result in my burning up muscle since I have approximately no fat?
Thanks for any answers. Sorry if I'm being dumb in any way - I am entirely new to fitness/bodybuilding.
Basically I'm a very skinny 19 year old guy. I'm 6ft2 and weigh about 60kg. I spent ages telling myself that it would be very hard for me to bulk up because I was naturally so skinny, but I now realise that that was just me being lazy.
I've had a quick scout around online, and I've come up with a provisional diet/exercise plan to help me get bigger. I am not trying to be Arnold Schwarzenegger, but I would like to stop looking like an anorexic stick insect.
If anyone could have a quick look at my initial planned diet/exercise routine, I'd be grateful. I am on a gap year at the moment, so I'm holding out until October when I will have the use of a free gym in my college. So the exercises below are not weights-based.
Diet
Based on a rough input of what I ate yesterday, I guess I'm eating about 1600kcal per day. This is because I don't have much of an appetite and I'm lazy when it comes to food. This food is generally not junk - as I'm living at home I tend to get a good cooked meal every evening, and I make my own sandwiches to take to work. Breakfast is generally toast/cereal/croissants (last one's not so healthy, I realise).
After a few minutes of Googling, I found a suggestion that I should eat (in kcal):
bodyweight in pounds (135) * 18 = 2430kcal
+ 500kcal after a couple of weeks at that level
Does this seem reasonable? And would the diet below be good enough to achieve that, and give me a reasonable amount of protein?
Breakfast:
[INDENT]-Cereal (large bowl) w/milk (semi-skimmed)
-Fruit (one item)[/INDENT]
Mid-morning snack:
[INDENT]-Nuts (I like peanuts and pistachio - are these equally good?)
-Fruit (one item)
[/INDENT]
Lunch:
[INDENT]-Cheese and ham sandwich (x2, i.e. four slices of bread)
-Fruit (one item)
-Chocolate bar or piece of cake[/INDENT]
Dinner:
[INDENT]-Cooked dinner of some kind, usually involving chicken/salmon/pork and potato/rice, plus some veg
-Fruit (one item)
-Biscuits/pudding of some kind[/INDENT]
Evening snack:
[INDENT]-Nuts
-Fruit (one item)[/INDENT]
Exercise
I was planning to follow the basic routine set out here to begin with. Doing pull-ups is a problem for me at the moment, given the lack of equipment (my house doesn't seem to offer many pull-up opportunities either). I was planning to replace these with sit-ups, but I then need something to exercise my biceps. Any ideas? I guess I could buy some dumbbells - what sort of weight should I start out with?
Also, would it be a good idea to do much cardio-vascular stuff alongside my other exercises, or will this just result in my burning up muscle since I have approximately no fat?
Thanks for any answers. Sorry if I'm being dumb in any way - I am entirely new to fitness/bodybuilding.
Depends on diet. Exercise burns calories - if you burn more calories than you consume, you lose weight, and cannot gain any muscle tissue - you can get stronger though, but due to neural adaptation. So long as you are in caloric deficit, you WILL lose weight. If you are not losing weight, you are not in caloric deficit. It is that simple, and cannot be argued with - it's simple physics. Whether that weightloss will be muscle tissue, fat or glycogen is anyone's guess, and depends on what kind of exercise you are doing, and what your diet is like. If you do the right kinds of exercises - i.e. train to provide an ample stimulus for muscle growth, and consume more calories than you burn, you might gain muscle - testosterone plays a role in building muscle, and as women have less testosterone than men, it's much harder for women to gain muscle.
Resistance exercise is the stimulus that encourages muscle growth - this can be in the form of weights, but also machines. Freeweights are better though, as it recruits more muscle fibres, and requires you to balance it and coordinate your movements. Things like yoga, pilates, cardio, etc will not build muscle in most people - they do not provide an intense enough stimulus to the muscles or nervous system.
If you're talking about bodyweight squats and lunges, they are very unlikely to build any muscle in the majority of people.
Resistance exercise is the stimulus that encourages muscle growth - this can be in the form of weights, but also machines. Freeweights are better though, as it recruits more muscle fibres, and requires you to balance it and coordinate your movements. Things like yoga, pilates, cardio, etc will not build muscle in most people - they do not provide an intense enough stimulus to the muscles or nervous system.
If you're talking about bodyweight squats and lunges, they are very unlikely to build any muscle in the majority of people.
(edited 11 years ago)
Heavy weights with small reps, and not always the same amount of reps as your body gets use to the weight and slows down the amount of muscle built.
Example of what I did as a beginner doing squats (dependant on how much natural strength you have)
Warm up with little or no weight, a couple of 10 rep sets
2x 10 kg sets ( 5 reps each )
2x 20 kg sets ( 4 reps each )
2x 30 kg sets ( 3 reps each )
Etc. but when you do them the next time try and change it slightly like:
2x 15 kg sets ( 4 reps each )
2x 23 kg sets ( 2 reps each )
2x 32 kg sets ( 2 reps each )
Or something similar, or your body will just get use to the weight and you won't be maximising your potential muscle gain.
Example of what I did as a beginner doing squats (dependant on how much natural strength you have)
Warm up with little or no weight, a couple of 10 rep sets
2x 10 kg sets ( 5 reps each )
2x 20 kg sets ( 4 reps each )
2x 30 kg sets ( 3 reps each )
Etc. but when you do them the next time try and change it slightly like:
2x 15 kg sets ( 4 reps each )
2x 23 kg sets ( 2 reps each )
2x 32 kg sets ( 2 reps each )
Or something similar, or your body will just get use to the weight and you won't be maximising your potential muscle gain.
Original post by yeliz.
Hi,
When a person does squats, lunges etc does this help a person loose weight or does it slowly help build muscle? or are weights needed in order to build muscle?
When a person does squats, lunges etc does this help a person loose weight or does it slowly help build muscle? or are weights needed in order to build muscle?
Both - depends on the diet. Eating next to nothing all day and lifting weights will just contribute to weight loss.
Hey! Click on Fitness FAQ in my sig to see the sticky of information that's been put together regarding this topic. Hopefully this should be of help to you. As said above, if you're in a calorie deficit you will lose weight and won't be able to build any significant muscle. Have a look at the information in the sticky, that should clear things up.
Original post by yeliz.
Hi,
When a person does squats, lunges etc does this help a person loose weight or does it slowly help build muscle? or are weights needed in order to build muscle?
When a person does squats, lunges etc does this help a person loose weight or does it slowly help build muscle? or are weights needed in order to build muscle?
Generally squats and lunges are exercises to tone or increase muscle mass of the legs. However, it could depend on the intensity of the exercise as it could act as both.
For example, doing 100 bodyweight squats not only work your muscular endurance, but also act as a cardiovascular exercise which aid weight loss. However in my opinion, weights are unnecessary if you just want to lose weight, but it is always good to balance things up by adding a few exercises with high reps for muscular endurance.
Original post by Vodka
I am sorry but I have to say this, your routine have to be scrapped ASAP. I don't know what specific exercises you are doing but first things first why are you working out 7 days a week? Even a professional bodybuilder have at least ONE rest day. How long have you been working out? If you are a beginner you should be doing a full body workout 3/4 times a day instead and the majority of the exercises SHOULD be COMPOUNDS. This seems to be a little Broscience here but you are better off doing full body compound exercises than the routine that you drawn out.
You seem to be emphasising your ''mirror muscles'' which is your chest, biceps and forearms. There is no point working them out 2 times a week seperately which will slowly lead to overtraining. If you want bigger arms, work on your triceps, your forearms and biceps could only grow a tad much in your lifetime.
Abs everyday? Are you serious? The only way to get a six-pack abs is to LOSE WEIGHT, nothing else, abs exercises are only for definition but with all those belly fat, abs exercises are just a waste of time.
Again, I don't know what exercises you are doing, but I suggest you do some research before creating your own routine. Getting ripped for summer is not as easy as you think
Anyways, nutrition wise, everything seems ok as long as you are getting enough calories and proteins you need. Remember try to get about 2g of protein per KG.
If you have any questions feel free to message me.
Cheers,
-Kevin
You seem to be emphasising your ''mirror muscles'' which is your chest, biceps and forearms. There is no point working them out 2 times a week seperately which will slowly lead to overtraining. If you want bigger arms, work on your triceps, your forearms and biceps could only grow a tad much in your lifetime.
Abs everyday? Are you serious? The only way to get a six-pack abs is to LOSE WEIGHT, nothing else, abs exercises are only for definition but with all those belly fat, abs exercises are just a waste of time.
Again, I don't know what exercises you are doing, but I suggest you do some research before creating your own routine. Getting ripped for summer is not as easy as you think
Anyways, nutrition wise, everything seems ok as long as you are getting enough calories and proteins you need. Remember try to get about 2g of protein per KG.
If you have any questions feel free to message me.
Cheers,
-Kevin
Thanks for that reply there kevin! appreciate it
As I told you I am completely new to this and hence I wanted some peoples suggestion. I have been working out for about a month and see very little improvement !! I follow a variety of exercises which I came across on youtube with lots of positive feedback :s Like for e.g say if i wanted to do biceps and I just youtube them and follow like 3 exercises of 10-15 reps with 3 sets. Check this out - http://www.youtube.com/user/passion4profession/videos?view=1 . I take 1-2 mins break between each set. I am working on 2.5/5 kgs as of now for most of the dumbbell exercises. What exactly are full body compound exercises? :s
Alright I guess I will rest Sundays and Wednesdays . Would that be fine ?
During the days that I rest i wont be burning so much calories , so should I change my diet to something which contains less calorie and less protein ? Well, ABS is not so easy but i was told it has to be done regularly for best results. so I decided I would do it 7 days a week -_- . Is that not good ? I can fell my abs region getting stronger though .I follow that 8 mins routine on youtube. Its pretty intense !
My diet is more or less perfect now! I have consulted with few other people. I am aiming to take 100 grams protein per day as of now.
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by lolerwaffles
Thanks for that reply there kevin! appreciate it As I told you I am completely new to this and hence I wanted some peoples suggestion. I have been working out for about a month and see very little improvement !! I follow a variety of exercises which I came across on youtube with lots of positive feedback :s Like for e.g say if i wanted to do biceps and I just youtube them and follow like 3 exercises of 10-15 reps with 3 sets. I take 1-2 mins break between each set. I am working on 2.5/5 kgs as of now for most of the dumbbell exercises.
What exactly are full body compound exercises? :s
Alright I guess I will rest Sundays and Wednesdays . Would that be fine ? During the days that I rest i wont be burning so much calories , so should I change my diet to something which contains less calorie and less protein ?
Well, ABS is not so easy but i was told it has to be done regularly for best results. so I decided I would do it 7 days a week -_- . Is that not good ? I can fell my abs region getting stronger though .I follow that 8 mins routine on youtube. Its pretty intense !
My diet is more or less perfect now! I have consulted with few other people. I am aiming to take 100 grams protein per day as of now.
As I told you I am completely new to this and hence I wanted some peoples suggestion. I have been working out for about a month and see very little improvement !! I follow a variety of exercises which I came across on youtube with lots of positive feedback :s Like for e.g say if i wanted to do biceps and I just youtube them and follow like 3 exercises of 10-15 reps with 3 sets. I take 1-2 mins break between each set. I am working on 2.5/5 kgs as of now for most of the dumbbell exercises. What exactly are full body compound exercises? :s
Alright I guess I will rest Sundays and Wednesdays . Would that be fine ?
During the days that I rest i wont be burning so much calories , so should I change my diet to something which contains less calorie and less protein ? Well, ABS is not so easy but i was told it has to be done regularly for best results. so I decided I would do it 7 days a week -_- . Is that not good ? I can fell my abs region getting stronger though .I follow that 8 mins routine on youtube. Its pretty intense !
My diet is more or less perfect now! I have consulted with few other people. I am aiming to take 100 grams protein per day as of now.
No problem mate
A full body workout is a session which works all of your muscles in contrast to the routine you posted.
Compound exercises are basically an exercise which its movement require 2 or more joints/muscle groups. Isolation exercises are the opposite, which is an exercise which utilises only 1 muscle group.
So an example of compounds is the Bench Press, the Bench Press not only works your Chest, but also your triceps and shoulders.
An example of isolation exercise is the Dumbbell Flys which ONLY work your chest muscles, nothing else.
Compound exercises are generally recommended for beginners and intermediates as they are all natural movements that you can relate to in real life. Many people also benefited greatly from them compared to isolations. However, do remember that isolation exercises are not useless, they have their place once you have developed a foundation for your body and muscles and don't be afraid to add one or two of them in your routine. Therefore, from now on, try to stick with compound movements
I'll name a few (but not limited of) compound exercises that you can check it out (Not really complete):
Bench Press (Chest, Triceps, Shoulders)
Shoulder Press (Chest, Triceps, Shoulders)
Pull-Ups (Back (latissimus dorsi), Biceps)
Deadlifts (Back, Hamstrings, quadriceps,Core)
Squats (Basically works your whole body)
Lunges (Hamstrings, Quadriceps, Core)
Isolations
Bicep Curls (Biceps)
Pushdowns (Triceps)
Kickbacks (Triceps)
Leg Extension (Quadriceps)
Leg Curls (Hamstring)
Dumbbell Fly (Chest)
I would recommend researching a 3 Day Split, or a 3 Day Full Body Workout. I can give you an example:
Monday-Chest, Triceps and Shoulders
Bench Press 3x8-15
Incline Bench press 2x8-15
Dips 3x8-15
Shoulder Press 3x8-15
Shrugs 2x8-15
Tuesday- Rest Day
Wednesday-Back and Biceps
Pull Ups 3x8-15
T-Bar Rows 3x8-15
Lat Pull downs (wide grip) 2x8-15
Dumbbell Curls 3x8-15
Thursday-Rest
Friday-Legs and Abs
Squats 3x8-20
Deadlifts 3x8-15
Leg Press 2x8-15
Abs Work
Saturday & Sunday-Rest Day
Seems like a little but trust me a similar routine like the one above is more effective than working out 7 days a week.
Your calorie and protein intake on your rest days should be the same as your typical workout days. Rest days are very important as it counts as a day for recovery, and you don't want a calorie/protein deficit while recovering for your next workout.
Abs work is very important for the healthy core and back which is very important in preventing injuries. However, doing them could only strengthen and define your abs, but it doesn't make it more revealing.
Good to know that you are aware of the importance of nutrition
remember, nutrition is key to fitness Cheers,
Kev
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